Parallel motion for looms



June 8, 1937. L. M. ROGERS PARALLEL MOTION FOR LOOMS Filed Jan. 12, 1937 INVENTOR.

ZEO/YAED/Z EOGEES. BY m %M ATTORNEY.

Patented June 8, 1937 PATENT OFFICE PARALLEL MOTION FOR LOOMS Leonard M. Rogers, Mendon, Mass assignor to Draper Corporation, Hopedale, Mass., a, corporation of Maine.

Application January 12, 1937, Serial No. 120,257

Claims.

The presentinvention pertains to the shuttle picking mechanisms of fly shuttle looms and has more particular reference to the devices for supporting and guiding the picker stick of such 5 mechanisms.

Looms of the type to which my invention pertains commonly include a parallel, socalled, a curved shoe rocking on the parallel, a picker stick fixed to and rocking with the shoe, means engaging the picker stick for imparting operative movement thereto, and thrust means carried by the parallel for receiving the inward thrust of the lower end of the picker stick. Prior to the present invention, such thrust means as used commercially consisted of a parallel plug, so-called, attached to the parallel and provided with a rounded nose which was engaged by a wear tongue on the picker stick, Inasmuch as the picker stick has a vertical movement relative to the parallel plug, such plugs and the wear tongues wear out rapidly and must be replaced frequently.

It has been proposed to eliminate the aforementioned parallel plug and substitute therefor a roller journalled on a pin carried by the parallel. Such proposed construction has not been satisfactory and has not been used commercially to any very great extent, partly because of the difficulty of lubricating the bearing pin and because of the inability of such a pin to withstand the repeated blows of the picker stick. 7

The principal object of the present invention is to provide in a loom, a parallel, shoe, picker stick, and wear tongue as aforesaid and a parallel .plug having a roller journalled in an open-sided bear- 5 ing therein and exposed through the bearingfor engagement by the wear tongue, to thereby provide a novel and efficient anti-friction bearing for the picker stick.

The foregoing and other'objects of the inven- 4 tion are accomplished in the construction illus trated on the accompanying drawing, of which:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation, partly in section, of mechanism comprising the preferred embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of a part of the mechanism of Fig. 1, to a larger scale; and

Fig. 3 is a detail view in perspective of certain parts shown on Figs. 1 and 2.

The mechanism shown on the drawing is ap- 5 plied to a fly shuttle loom which is generally of conventional construction and the drawing accordingly shows only a part of a loom side I and such part of the shuttle picking mechanism as is necessary to an understanding of the present 5 invention. It will be understood that the loom side I is at the left hand side of the loom and that the shuttle picking mechanism shown is the left hand mechanism, there being another picking mechanism, not shown, at the other side of the loom. 5

The shuttle picking mechanism includes a support 2, commonly known in the art as a parallel, which is fixed to the lay rocker shaft 3 and which extends outwardly of the loom from the loom side I. The parallel has an upper surface 4, pref- 10 erably flat, on which a curved shoe 5 rests. The shoe 5 rocks on the parallel and may be guided in its movements by a guide fin 6 which projects upwardly from the parallel into a slot in the shoe. The parallel is provided with an opening 1 15 beneath the shoe 5.

A picker stick 8 is fixed to the shoe 5 to rock therewith. To this end the picker stick may extend through the shoe and be secured thereto by. a bolt 9 which passes through the shoe, picker stick and the end of a strap Ill. The lower end of the picker stick projects downwardly through the opening 1 and the strap It extends around the lower end of the picker stick and to a springactuated drum H. The upper end of the picker stick is moved inwardly of the loom, which is to-, ward the right on Fig.1, by a conventional lug strap, not shown,fand the drum ll. andv strap Hi return the upperend of the picker stick outwardly, or toward the left on Fig. 1. 30

Since the lug strap and strap In both tend to pull the lower end of the picker stick inwardly of the loom, means is provided for receiving the thrust of the lower end of thepicker stick and thereby holding the stick against inward move-. ment. Such holding means must accommodate the vertical movement of the lower end of the, picker. stick which results. from the rocking of the curved shoe 5 on the flat surface 4. Tothis end, a wear tongue I2 is fixed on the inner edge of the lower end of the picker stick, as by a setscrew I3, and a member I4 is fixed in the parallel 2 at the inner end of the opening 1. The member l4, although of novel construction, is hereinafter called a parallel plug, that being the tech- 5 nical name of prior devices for receiving the thrust of the lower end of the picker stick.

The particular parallel plug l4 shown on the drawing consists of a relatively flat elongated body having a cylindrical anti-friction roller I5 journalled therein. The body of this parallel plug is tapered toward its inner end so that it may be wedged into a horizontal pocket in the parallel 2 with the outer end of the plug project- 7 ing into the opening I. The parallel plug is provided with a head 16 extending transversely across the outer end thereof. A bearing [1 extends through the head l6 and the roller I5 is journalled directly in this bearing.

The bearing I! extends entirely through the parallel plug from the front to the rear edge thereof, but the side of the bearing which is at the outer end of the plug is open, to expose one side of the'roller IS. The exposed side of the roller I5 is directly engaged by the wear tongue l2. The bearing i! may be formed by first forming the parallel plug with a larger head l6 thanis shown, then drilling or otherwise forming a completely cylindrical bearing in the head, and then removing the outer or left-hand portion of the head to thus open one side of the bearing. I prefer to remove as much of the head as is necessary to expose the roller, leaving at least part of the bearing extending around more than half of the circumference of the roller. The roller is thus held in the bearing and cannot drop out while the loom is in operation.

The diameter of the bearing 1! is just enough larger than the diameter of the roller IE to per mit the roller to rotate freely in the bearing Without appreciable lost motion. Since no part of the head it projects outwardly beyond the exposed side of the roller, the thrust of the lower end of the picker stick is received by the roller and transmitted through the body of the plug I4 to the parallel 2. I have thus provided an anti-friction bearing which is sufiiciently strong to withstand the repeated shocks to which it is subjected' Furthermore, the bearing and the external surface of the roller are easy to lubricate because lubricant applied to the roller will be carried to the bearing surface by rotation or oscillation of theiroller.

The parallel plug 14 as above described is detachably mounted in the parallel whereby it may be removed and replaced if so desired. Such plug may be made of proper size to fit existing parallels. The parallel plug therefore'constitutes a marketable article of manufacture which I desire to claim as such." 7

Having fully disclosed the preferred embodiment of my invention, I'claimz l 1. In a loom the combination of a parallel having an Opening therein, a curved shoe rocking on said parallel; a picker stick fixed'to said shoe, the lower end of saidpicker stick projecting downwardly through said opening, a wear tongue on the inner edge of said picker stick at the lower end thereof, and a plug fixed to said parallel and projecting into said opening to receive inward thrust of the lower end of said picker stick, said plug comprising a body having an open sided bearing extending transversely thereof at its outer end and a cylindrical roller journalled di-' rectly in said bearing and exposed through the open side thereof, the exposed side of said roller being engaged by said wear tongue.

2. In a loom the combination of a parallel having an opening therein, a curved shoe rocking on said parallel over said opening, a picker stick fixed to said shoe, the lower end of said picker stick projecting downwardly through said opening a wear tongue on the inner edge of said picker stick at the lower end thereof, and a plug detachably fixed to said parallel at the inner end of said opening, said plug comprising a body having a head at its outer end and a cylindrical roller journalled in a bearing in said head and extending-transversely of said picker stick, said bearing being open at one side to expose one side of said roller and'the exposed portion of the roller being in engagement with said wear tongue to receive the inward thrust of the lower end of said picker stick, at least part of said bearing extending around more than half of the circumference of said roller to thereby retain the latter in the bearing.

3. As an article of manufacture, a parallel plug for receiving the thrust of the lower end of a picker stick, said plug comprising a body adapted to be attached to a loom parallel, said body having a bearing extending transversely through one end thereof, one side of said bearing being open, and a cylindrical roller journalled directly in said bearing, one side of said roller being exposed through said opening for the purpose described.

4. As an article of manufacture, a parallel plug for receiving the thrust of the lower end of a picker stick, said plug comprising a body adapted to be attached to a loom parallel, said body having an open-sided bearing extending transversely through one end thereof, and a cylindrical roller journalled directly in said bearing, one side of said roller being exposed through the open side of said bearing, and at least a part of said bearing extending around more than half of the circumference of said roller to thereby retain the latter in the bearing.

5. As an article of manufacture, a parallel plug for receiving the thrust of the lower end of a pickerstick, said plug comprising a relatively flat elongated body adapted to be attached to a loom parallel, said body having a bearing extending transversely through one end thereof, the side of said bearing at the end of said body being open, and a cylindrical roller journalled directly in said bearing and exposed through the open side of the latter, said bearing throughout its length extending around more than half of the circumference of said roller to thereby retain the latter in the bearing.

LEONARD M. ROGERS. 

